Bashaar and I first met at Dalton State College. I was a pre-nursing student and Bashaar was a pre-med student. Both of these pathways required us to take a health prospectives class. I remember being terrified, this was my very first day on campus. I had no idea where anything was or how to get to my classes. He was standing outside the classroom door, mindlessly scrolling through his phone when I interrupted by saying "hey, is this the room for the health prospectives?". A glance up with a "yeah" was the end of that conversation. Of course, since this was our first day of class, we had to do a "get to know me skill". The three facts I chose about myself was that I enjoyed true crime, collected records and had an unhealthy obsession with cows. This sparked Bashaar's interest. He found me after class to tell me about a true crime documentary I might like and that was the start of it all. Who knew love could be built off of the common interest in murder.

Although we had been to many fast-food restaurants and had many study dates, we hadn't yet made it official. It was December 3, 2021. It was my idea to go get dinner and go ice-skating to enjoy the winter season. We were sitting at a Chili's in Chattanooga in a booth the perfect size for two. Silently eating together, Bashaar looked up at me to mention that he wanted to know how I felt about dating. I was nervous, of course, but also extremely interested in him. Finally I came out and said "Are you asking me out?" to which he of course said "Yes" and I told him he had to literally ask me to be his girlfriend. I thought it was the cutest thing ever. Afterward, we went ice-skating. During this venture of ours, high on excitement, I thought I was the best skater in the rink. Needless to say, I fell not once, not twice, but THREE times. We haven't been ice-skating since, and that's probably for the best :)

Bashaar was living completely on his own. We had spent the last few days moving furniture, cleaning, and decorating. Moving is exhausting, but it can apparently help you realize you want to marry someone. He called me and told me he had a surprise for me. I'm extremely nosey and don't do well with surprises so I spent at least an hour trying to pry it from him on what the surprise was. "I want to show you the decorations I've put up" he had said. That was a lie by the way. He instructed me to call him when I pulled into the driveway. At this point I became very curious. I called to let him know I had made it and was waiting at the door. He cracked the door ever so slightly and said "I'm gonna let you in but you have to put your hands over your eyes and keep your eyes closed". With my eyes sealed shut and my hands covering them to keep my promise of no peaking, I entered the house. I could smell candles and some sort of floral. He told me I could finally open my eyes. When I did I found him on one knee, ring in hand, at the end of a walkway of candles and flowers. The sweetest thing. I was so shocked I couldn't believe it. When I say shocked, there is a video to prove that I asked this man at least five times if he was just joking. And that will still remain one of the sweetest days of my life.